hackers in my mac

[joaog]

hi guys,

i'm from portugal. my internet connection is through a usb device. i have being using the net from the same company over a year. last november i changed to a mac and since then my daily net consume has double with no particular reason since my internet habits are pretty much the same. unless macs consume more than pcs - which seems ridiculous to me - this situation is leading to the conclusion there might be someone using my internet connection when i am logged on, eventhough this doesnt make sense to me since we are talking about a usb device and not wireless.

do you guys have any ideas whats going on and how to fix the problem? i have been charged 3 times more than i use to pay in pc time and i'm getting pretty desperate...

thanks in advance
joao

[weeks]

I'll take a guess: When you upgrade computer with a faster processor, web services can start streaming more services to you. It's not time that is the key factor, it how much data you are receiving. You get more in time you're on line. More ads, mostly. That might be part of it.

But, I would also check that the computer is turned off and the USB is not in service.

I would check with your ISP and see what they recommend.

[joaog]

weeks,

thank you very much for your email (and time):

a) the usb device is not in service
b) shouldn't i see the ads, like pop ups for instance? i am saying this because i have no sign about more ads coming.
c) the isp provider only tells me to run a spyware software. they really dont care, to be honest.

that's my problem at the moment, i have no clue about what is going on. i already asked for detailed description of what internet sites and how much data i got from them. maybe this way i can identify whats going on.

any other hints?

[The Contractor]

Are you using FireFox or other mozilla based browser? Is prefetch turned on? If prefetch is turned on you may very well be consuming a lot more. If you visit a site's page, you may be downloading several others (at least).

[SilverLining]

I'm wondering if this has anything to do with Mac updates, but most of these are not installed automatically.

On a side note, could anyone recommend a good Mac Spyware detection application?

[weeks]

joaog, I don't think you would notice many of the "extras" coming your way. Are you seeing overall "better performance?" If so, you might be pulling down more data, costing you more money.

Keep in mind, the higher cost may not be a result of your buying a new computer but something which just happened to occur at the same time.